TSX rises as copper prices boost miners

Investing.com —

Canada's commodity-heavy main stock index, the S&P/TSX Composite, traded on a positive note on Friday, supported by higher metals prices, with copper on track to log its biggest weekly gain in seven months.

Wall Street’s main indices meanwhile traded in the red following hotter than expected U.S. Producer Prices data, which further dampened hopes of early rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Toronto Stock Market News

Ero Copper (TSX:ERO) and Lundin Mining (OTC:LUNMF) (TSX:LUN) were the biggest gainers on the TSX today, benefiting from robust copper prices.

Air Canada (TSX:AC) fell to the bottom of the TSX today as investors digested rising operating expenses following the company's earnings report. Air Canada reported fourth-quarter net income of $184 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.41 compared to a net income of $168 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.41 in this quarter a year ago. Operating revenues of $5.175 billion increased $495 million or 11% year over year. For the full year 2023, Air Canada reported record operating revenues of $21.8 billion for 2023, up 32% from full year 2022. The company also lifted its forecast for its 2024 core profit.

TC Energy (TSX:TRP) reported fourth-quarter profit of $1.46 billion, amounting to $1.41 per share. The result compared with a loss of $1.45 billion or $1.42 per share this time last year, when the company took a one-time charge related to its Coastal GasLink project. Revenue for the quarter totalled $4.24 billion, up from $4.04 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Fairfax Financial (TSX:FFH), which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, reported a fourth-quarter profit attributable to shareholders of US$1.3 billion, down from US$2.3 billion a year earlier. The profit amounted to US$52.87 per diluted share for the quarter ended Dec. 31, down from US$91.87 per diluted share a year earlier. Net insurance revenue was up at US$5.68 billion from US$5.31 billion a year ago.

TD (TSX:TD) Securities cuts target price on Canadian Tire (TSX:CTCa) Corporation Ltd to $155 from $160

RBC (TSX:RY) cuts target price on MTY Food Group (TSX:MTY) to $58 from $66,

For all earnings, view our earnings calendar.

Toronto Stocks Moving Markets Today

Top Gainers on the TSX Today:

• Ero Copper Corp (TSX:ERO)
• Lundin Mining Corporation (TSX:LUN)
• Stelco (TSX:STLC)

Top Losers on the TSX Today:

• Air Canada (TSX:AC)
• Nuvei (TSX:NVEI)
• NovaGold (TSX:NG)

For all Canadian Stocks Moving Markets today, view our Canada Markets Page.

In Canadian Economics

Data from Statistics Canada shows Canadian investors acquired a record $29.4 billion of foreign securities in December, driven by a record investment in foreign shares. Foreign investment in Canadian securities totalled $10.4 billion, largely in debt instruments.

Separate data from StatsCan shows that Canadian wholesale sales grew 0.3% to $82.9 billion in December. In volume terms, wholesale sales rose 0.2% in December.

For all Canadian economic releases, view our economic calendar.

All currencies Canadian Dollar unless noted otherwise.